Bag-holding apparatus.



: N 765,578. A PATENTED JULY 19, 1904.

0. T. HOLMAN.

BAG HOLDING APPARATUS. APPLICATION FILED NOV. 27, 1903.

N0 MODEL.

UNITED STATES Patented July 19, 1904.

PATENT OFFICE.

BAG-HOLDING APPARATUS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 765,578, dated July 19, 1904.

Application filed, November 27, 1908. Serial No. 182,840. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, CHARLES TI-IEOFLUS HoL MAN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Meadville, in the county of Crawford and State of Pennsylvania, have invented new and useful Improvements in Bag-Holding Apparatus, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to bag-holding apparatus.

The object of the invention is to support paper bags in such manner as while positively obviating all danger of injury, as by tearing, to permit of their ready removal for use, to prevent accidental displacement of the bags from their supporting means, and generally to simplify. and improve the construction of devices of this character and to reduce the cost of construction to a minimum.

With the above and other objects in view, as will appear as the nature of the invention is better understood, the same consists, general 1y stated, in a bag-holding apparatus comprising a support a plurality of bag penetrating or supporting members, and pivoted keepers coacting with the supporting members and adapted readily to be brought into locked relation therewith to prevent accidental separation of the bags from their supports.

The invention consists, further, in a support, a plurality of bag penetrating or supporting members'rigid therewith, and a plurality of hinged or pivoted keepers provided with means to interlock with the supporting members. The invention consists, further, in a bag-holding apparatus embodying a standard, a plurality of bag penetrating or supporting members, and a plurality of bag-keepers coacting with the supporting members, each keeper being provided with a stop to hold it in operative position with relation to the supporting member and with a hook, loop, or bend to engage with the supporting member. The invention consists, further, in the various novel details of construction of a bag-holding apparatus, as will be hereinafter fully described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, and in which like characters ofreference indicate corresponding parts, there is illustrated one form of embodi- .the taste of the user.

ment of the invention capable of carrying the same into practical operation, it being understood that the elements therein exhibited may be varied or changed as to shape, proportion, and exact manner of assemblage without departing from the spirit thereof, and in these drawings Figure 1 is a view in perspective of the apparatus, one of the keepers being shown as out of engagement with the bag penetrating or supporting member and thrown to one side. Fig. 2 is a view in perspective, on an enlarged scale, of one of the bag-supporting members with its keeper.

Referring to the drawings, 1 designates the standard or support for the device, which may be made of any suitable material of any desired size and ornamented or not, according to As-herein shown, the standard is rectilinear in cross-section and is provided with an ornamental base and cap; but it is to be understood that, if preferred, it may be square in cross-section and the cap may be omitted. By preference the standard is made of wood and is of such height as to permit of its being placed upon a store-counter, thus to bring the bags within easy reach of an attendant; but it is to be understood that it may be made of any height without departing from the spirit of the invention.

The bag supporting and retaining means comprises a bag penetrating or supporting member 2, which is by preference rigid with the standard, is resilient in character, and may or may not be pointed, as desired, and a keeper 3, which is bail-shaped and is held assembled with the standard for pivotal movement in this instance by staples 4; but it is to be understood that, if preferred, any other form of attaching device may be employed for this purpose as may be found necessary or desirable. That end of the keeper 3 adjacent to the standard is provided at its lower end with a toe 5, which will prevent the accidental separation of said keeper from its staples 4 and in this instance the toe is shown as hearing upon the supporting member 2; but this arrangement may be dispensed withthat is to say, the lower staple may be elevated at such distance above the supporting member as to permit the toe to be free of the supporting member. By preference the upper staple will engage with the vertical member of the keeper at its bend, thus to hold it against downward movement. Furthermore, the keeper will be made of resilient material, preferably of brass, on account of its non-oxidizing qualities, its transverse or body member being normally flexed upward to cause the hook or catch 6 at its free end when interlocked with the supporting member 2 positively to prevent accidental disconnection between it and the supporting member.

As stated, the supporting member may be pointed or not, and where pointed it will be adapted to puncture the bags supported thereby; but where the bags are already punctured to receive the supporting member the latter may be made blunt.

By pivotally assembling the keeper with the standard the former may be turned to one side, as shown in Fig. 1, thus to permit ready disconnection of the bags therefrom; but it is to be understood that, if preferred, the keeper may be normally flexed in such manner that when releasedfrom the supporting member it will lift a sufficient distance to permit ready removal of the bags.

While the device of this invention is exceedingly simple of construction, it will be found thoroughly eflicient in use for the purpose designed and will present bags in such manner as to permit ready selection of the propersized bag by the attendant in a manner that will at once simplify such procedure and save loss of time and labor, such as usually attends this procedure.

It is to be understood, of course, that the invention is not to be limited to the employment of a wooden standard having the bag penetrating or supporting members rigidly connected therewith, as it will be obvious that, if preferred, such members may have a hinged connection with the standard. Furthermore, it is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited to the employement of staples for As herein shown, the four sides of the standard are provided with the bag-holding means; but, if preferred, .as where the standard is placed against a wall or other supporting-surface, the said bag-holding members may be arranged on three sides of the standard, or, if preferred, upon two or only one side thereof.

From a standpoint of cheapness of construction and facility of manufacture itwill generally be preferred to make the standard of wood; but it is to be understood that it may be made up of any other material suited to the purpose. Furthermore, it is to be understood that the standard may be dispensed with and the bag-holding means, embodying the bag penetrating or supporting member and the bag-keeper, may be assembled with any suitable support, such as a wall or the It will be obvious from the foregoing description that the bag-holding means comprises a bag-supporting member and a swinging bag-keeper having a branch extending ap proximately at right angles therefrom, the keeper being of wire and the branch terminating at its free end in a bend to receive the free portion or end of the bag-supporting member. In the present instance the keeper, as previously described, is of bail shape, one branch of the keeper being supported for swinging movement, while the other branch is arranged to interlock with the bag-supporting member, and the latter branch is provided with the hook or bend to which reference has been made.

Having thus described the invention, what I claim is- '1. A bag-holding apparatus comprising a bag. supporting member and a bail shaped keeper, the outer branch of which is arranged to interlock with said bag-supporting member, and staples straddling the inner branch of said keeper to secure the swinging movement of the latter.

2. A bag-holding apparatus comprising a bag-supporting member and a bail-shaped bag-keeper, the outer branch of which is arranged to interlock with said bag-supportingmember, and staples straddling the inner branch of the keeper, one staple being situated near the transverse portion of the keeper and the inner branch of the latter having a toe below the lower staple.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

CHARLES THEOFLUS HOLMAN Witnesses:

THos. CLEMSON, F. F. MURPHY. 

